EPA officials are confident that efficiency claims are true, but will investigate

The Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it will test the fuel efficiency claims that Ford has put forward with its C-Max Hybrid and the Fusion Hybrid. Recent findings from Consumer Reports (and actual drivers) claimed that both of the Ford hybrid vehicles fall well short of the claimed 47 mpg fuel efficiency.

"I am very confident that the sticker is sound, but I am also committed to keeping up with technology," said Chris Grundler, who heads the EPA's Office of Transportation and Air Quality, in an interview Monday on the sidelines of the Detroit auto show, about Ford's C-Max and Fusion hybrids.

"These two vehicles have the largest discrepancy between our overall-mpg results and the estimates published by the EPA that we've seen among any current models," Consumer Reports said in a statement.

Ford president of the Americas Joe Hinrichs says that Ford followed the EPA rules when certifying its vehicles. Grundler also notes that the EPA didn't receive any complaints on the fuel efficiency of Ford's hybrid vehicles until after the Consumer Reports story ran.